Is Your Dream Still Unrealized?

Another year is drawing closed. Seems like only yesterday that I realized my dream of becoming a writer, yet it’s been over 12 years since the dream became reality.

In 2002 Focus on the Family hired me as a junior copywriter. And even though I was now working as a writer, I struggled to think of myself as one. I didn’t have a degree in journalism or English. I didn’t have any articles published in magazines, nor did I have a published book.

But that didn’t mean I wasn’t a writer. Long before becoming a copywriter, I was writing novels in my spare time. After putting my son to bed I’d sit down at the computer with a cup of coffee (and no it wasn’t decaf) and write for hours. Often until one in the morning.

I wasn’t just writing for fun or relaxation—those were side benefits. I wrote with the intention of submitting my stories for publication. Only when I was 12 years old did I consider my writing as a hobby. Back then I wrote stories mostly based on TV shows I liked to watch. Star Trek being my favorite.

When I graduated from high school I opted to join the military instead of go to college. And like life does for most of us, it grabbed my attention. In my mid twenties I made another attempt toward my dream by taking a writing correspondence course. I learned a lot, but I never completed the course.

Writing fell to the wayside.

But my dream never died.

Two decades later (yes, really) I faced a decision between two jobs—a temporary position that would get me closer to my dream, or a permanent full time job that wouldn’t. During those intervening years, life had jerked me around like a leaf in gale force wind. I came to the realization I had allowed my fears to control my decisions. I decided it was time to reach for my dream again and accepted the temporary position that carried no benefits and offered less pay.

It turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made. I am where I am today in large part due to that decision.

I still have a long way to go. As I forge ahead there are plenty of times when I look back on my successes to encourage myself, to tell myself “Don’t give up.”

If you’ve ended the year unpublished and feel like you haven’t realized your dream, don’t give up. Just because you’re unpublished doesn’t mean you’re not a writer. And it doesn’t mean you’re not a writer, if writing isn’t your day job.

If you’ve been reading my blog (or others) and writing a novel, or nonfiction book, or magazine articles, or blog posts, then you are a writer.

Face down your fears and doubts and take action in spite of them.

Keep writing and learning the craft. Utilize critique groups. Submit, submit, submit. If you don’t submit—or put your work out there on a blog—you never will be published.

You can realize your dream, but only if you work at it.

Have you jumped a hurdle in your writing this year? Please tell me about it in the comments below. Your words just might be the encouragement another writer needs at this very moment.